Spring/Summer 2007 FREE The first word on arts, culture, and heritage in the Columbia Basin Jason Dunham found sculpture and fatherhood Ross Klatte loving and leaving, a memoir Lucas Myers is amazing and impermeable Blake Parker and the Beat goes on Lou Lynn implements and objects Paul Crawford Pierre Berton and me Susan Hulland & Terry Turner telling tales and making history festivals& in full colour Fernie Writers Conference July 22-29, 2007 Novel: John Keeble July 27-29 Short Story: Angie Abdou Poetry: Brenda Schmidt Golf: Jeff Wallach Fishing: TBA For tuition and scholarship information see web site www.ferniewriters.org Registration and Lodging (24 hours) 1-888-423-6855 Major sponsor: 2nd tier sponsors: CAPITOL THEATRE The Capitol Theatre Summer Youth Program Presents JACOB TWO TWO MEETS THE HOODED FANG Based on the book by Mordecai Richler Directed by Nicola Harwood Musical Director Bessie Wapp Choreographer Lynette Lightfoot Set by Brent Bukowski Thursday July 26, 2007 7:30pm Friday July 27, 2007 7:30pm Saturday July 28, 2007 7:30pm Saturday July 28, 2007 2:00pm Tickets $12 adult $8 youth $35 family of four Charge by phone Capitol Theatre Box Office 250-352-6363 first word spring/summer 2007 Bringing more colour into your lives contents THIS IS ONE OF THOSE admissions that will really date me, but when I was in the shower this morning I found myself warbling that milestones arts and heritage news 4 tune by Chicago (remember the band with the horn section?), “Colour My World.” No, I hadn’t just been to a 1970s wedding reception or a music festival populated by geezer groups, but there Page 5 meeting place Creston & Kimberley art clubs 5 must have been something subliminal going on. Maybe my brain went adrift after reading the article in the Globe and Mail about how on stage funny man Lucas Myers 6 some American Idol viewers were sabotaging the voting process by supporting a totally cute but apparently talentless 17-year-old. Hey, thought my subconscious, why not me? “As time goes by-y-y-y…” local colour Jason Dunham’s sculpture 8 On the other hand, it may just be that I’ve been immersed in colour a lot more than usual lately. And we’re not just talking cro- Lou Lynn’s objects cuses and robins. If you think that the spring/summer issue of handmade 10 ARTiculate is looking pretty spiffy, you’re right. We’ve doubled the number of colour pages in the magazine to give our readers more eye in memoriam Blake Parker 12 candy and to give the work of the artists we feature a more dynam- ic presence. Visual and performing artists from all over the region grace the pages of this issue and we’re thrilled to be able to bring ARTiculate events calendar 14 their vibrant words, works and stories to life. Colourful Cranbrook artist Joseph Cross's winnng entry to the Page 8 local histories Susan Hulland & Terry Turner 23 Trout Unlimited Canada artist of the year contest, Just Me and the Morning, recently fetched the highest price ever for a work at the TUC art auction in Calgary. Sculptor Jason Dunham (page 8) trans- hot off the press Ross Klatte & K.Linda Kivi 24 forms found objects and materials into fanciful pieces of art that engage the viewer with their size, textures and unexpected juxtapo- first person singular 26 sitions. Dunham is a recent father, as is Nelson-based actor and Paul Crawford’s Desert Road comic genius Lucas Myers (page 6), and both men credit their chil- dren with inspiring them and necessitating some fast-thinking career moves. You will find Myers at Nelson’s Oxygen Art Centre in July last word opinion 30 as artist-in-residence. The residency program provides a great oppor- tunity for artists to really concentrate their creative powers, as well on the cover: as to buckle down and get some work done. “Auger" by Lou Lynn, photo by Janet Dwyer Lou Lynn is an accomplished glass artist and instructor at the Kootenay School of Art whose inspiration for the sculptural works in her latest show, “Implements and Objects,” happens to be tools. Simone Keiran walks through the Kootenay Gallery with Lynn Page 12 beginning on page 10. We are pleased to be able to bring you the next installment in Paul Crawford’s wildly entertaining series of stories in which he reveals the incredible lengths to which he is willing to go in order to secure possession of yet another work of art. I have no idea how The first word on arts, culture, and heritage in the Columbia Basin much artwork Paul has acquired over the years, but his passion shows no signs of abating. On page 12 Paul has lemonade with SPRING/SUMMER 2007 Design: Angela Lockerbie ISSUE #11 Pierre Berton while on the trail of his latest gem. Sales: Rhonda Kirby Finally, we pay tribute to performance artist, poet and teacher ARTiculate is produced in Blake Parker, who died in January after a lengthy illness. Blake was Editor: Margaret Tessman Nelson as a project of the an energetic and prolific writer and performer whose collaborations Editorial Board: West Kootenay Regional with Nelson-area musicians and actors sprang from the tradition of Anne DeGrace, Nelson Arts Council: 250-352-2421 the Beat generation and stretched the limits of the spoken word. Krista Patterson, Nelson or 1-800-850-2787; Simone Keiran’s memorial, along with Fred Lorna Obermayr, New Denver fax: 250-352-2420 Rosenberg’s fine photos, can be found on email: [email protected] page 26. Contributing Writers: If it’s colour you’re after, be sure to Paul Crawford make plans to take in one, or better still a Sandra Hartline bunch, of the myriad art, music and com- Simone Keiran munity festivals that are planned for our Shannon Lythgoe Greg Nesteroff region this summer. From blues, jazz and Margaret Tessman bluegrass to stilt walkers, steam trains and garlic, there’s much to be seen and heard. Check out the ARTiculate event calendar ARTiculate acknowledges the support of the Province of British Columbia through the for details and I’ll see you there. B.C. Arts Council, the Columbia Basin Trust through the Columbia Kootenay Cultural Alliance Margaret Tessman and the West Kootenay Regional Arts Council. The first word on arts, culture, and heritage in the Columbia Basin 3 milestones brates both fabric art and David Thompson’s life in the Columbia Valley. The exhibit entitled “Latitude 50°32’12” W Longitude 115º56’15” N” opened in April at Pynelogs Cultural Centre in Invermere and will be available for display for the next five years Kootenay arts and heritage news of David Thompson bicentennial events. The three quilts that comprise the project honour the explo- by Margaret Tessman ration and mapping skills of David Thompson 200 years ago. One panel displays a chronology of key events in Thompson’s life; another depicts Thompson with his sextant on the east side of the Columbia River looking across to the site of Kootenai House trad- ing post; the third showcases the coat of arms of the North West Joseph Cross Painting a Prize Winner Company and Thompson’s map of western North America. Surrounding these key blocks are scenes depicting Thompson’s time CRANBROOK ARTIST Joseph Cross has been selected as 2007 in the valley between 1807 and 1812. Artist of the Year by Trout Unlimited Canada for his pastel paint- Organizations interested in booking the display can contact ing, Just Me and the Morning. Cross’s stunning work was chosen Joyce McLeod at 342-9667 or [email protected]. from among over 40 submissions received from across Canada for its vibrant colours and its Art Gallery of Golden Opens its Doors depiction of a serene river scene. THE NEW ART GALLERY of Golden opened in November after a This annual competition is whirlwind development process that began less than a year ago. Last open to any Canadian artist, summer an advisory committee of visual artists co-chaired by Kicking and comes with a prize of Horse Culture head Bill Usher was commissioned to create a wish list $2,000. The original piece is for the arts community. Golden already had strong performing arts sold at the annual Conservation and youth programming facilities, but the old Art Spot arts centre was Dinner in Calgary each spring. sorely in need of an update. A dedicated visual arts space with a great A limited-edition set of prints is location became number one on the committee’s list. sold at TUC’s fundraisers across It didn’t take long to move forward on the committee’s rec- Canada. ommendation. “I had just heard that Bacchus Books right smack Born in Saskatchewan in downtown was moving to a new location,” says Usher. “The rent 1949, Joseph Cross has lived was in the ballpark so we seized the opportunity.” Kicking Horse in Cranbrook since 1974. His Culture had previously secured CKCA capital project funding for professional career in art start- lighting for an arts space and from that starting place “the energy ed in 1978. Through his art, Just Me and the Morning by Joseph Cross. multiplied and catalyzed a bunch of people,” says Usher. The Joseph conveys perspectives organization also secured $60,000 in operating funding from the on the way we look at ourselves, our environment and our municipal government, no small feat in a town with a population lifestyles. A self-taught artist, Joseph works in several mediums of 8,000 people.